Ichigo: Redux
by Typewriterman
Summary: A soul cannot transcend without the help of the Shinigami, nor can anyone hope to continue on without their friends.  Be it in life or the afterlife, a young boy named Ichigo learns more than he ever thought he could about the consequences of one's action
1. Prologue

**The Prologue**

The world is in an eternal struggle for balance. In essence, there can never be one single thing, rather, a plethora of choices to be made in life. Without black, there is no white; without yin, there is no yang; without good, there is no bad; without the flickering light of the candle, there is no shadow.

There are others, however, that would like to believe otherwise. You were either pure, or an agent of evil; a harbinger of great disaster, if you lacked goodness in your heart. And if you lacked a heart altogether, you were hollow inside…cold and monstrous…alien and strange…

A society was born out of this train of thought. It was a society that had to mobilize its forces to not only protect itself, but to keep balance in the universe as well. Those souls who died made their way to the Soul Society, to live through their afterlife. However, not all souls made it to Soul Society, and were preyed on by denizens of the underworld, which constantly craved to fill their empty stomachs. But satisfaction would never come for them, and their lives would only be driven by their instinct, and limitless hunger.

Thus the Shinigami were created to not only slay these demons, but to protect those souls and guide them to Soul Society, until their return to the living world. By slaying those monsters, the Shinigami kept the much needed balance of theirs, and the living world.

But those of the living wanted to mobilize as well. Those spiritually aware formed a clan, naming themselves Quincys, to kill the Hollows in order to survive. They were not balancers like the Shinigami, however, and soon the hourglass came close to cracking , as those souls consumed by the monsters never came to Soul Society, thus were never reborn into the living world, thus leaving fewer and fewer spirits to feed on, that increased the attacks on the Quincys themselves.

They were nearly exterminated, the Quincys, for the sake of balancing the world, leaving only a few left in the living world, always to be monitored. But those who were sent to Soul Society would find discrimination for their destructive beliefs, and those Quincy formed a single clan in Sereitei, almost rivaling those noble families already established long ago.

But Hollows still roam, and kill, and rampage and the Shinigami must mobilize to slay them. They were merely seen as monsters to be destroyed by the sword…A Shinigami's sword…a Zanpakuto…

-- -- --

Dark clouds hovered in the sky, blanketing the land against the clear moonlight, allowing only the faintest illumination to pass through. They were in the forests of Soul Society, just outside the main districts where the souls themselves lived. A small contingent of nine darkly dressed Shinigami carefully made their way around under the leafy canopy at night, allowing the shadows to take on an eerie look. At the head of the group was a broad shouldered and raven haired man, who often took command of the squad when their sickly Captain couldn't join them. It was reported that a Hollow had appeared, and it had already killed a few Shinigami, making this more of a hunt rather than a simple slaying.

"Ichinose, take Suzumiya and Taraude to the north to cut off its escape…Kiyoske, take Jumide and Toshida and head west. If you see it head your way, don't engage it; contact us on the radio instead and break away from any combat."

The six darkly dressed men and women nodded at their orders, and speedily took off to their objective positions. For the thirteenth Shinigami squad, this was no mere drill; the Hollow posed a major threat to Soul Society, as all Shinigami outside the Sereitei had to be on their guard with their Zanpakuto unsheathed.

"What about us, Fukutaicho?" a young blonde girl asked eagerly. She and the bearded man next to her displayed their sharp blades with confidence, to show their readiness for the mission. The raven haired man couldn't help but smirk.

"Well, I was going to go check up on the training group to escort them back to Sereitei myself…Sentaro, Kiyone, if you two shut up long enough, I guess you'll be paired up with me."

"Th-thank you, Kaien-Fukutaicho!" the bearded man gasped out with a smile. The coil of rope wrapped around his forehead rose as his eyebrows arched upwards with glee. Not to be outdone by his gratitude, the blonde girl immediately slapped her white gloved hands to her sides, and bowed in reverence. Though, the devilish smirk she made to her peer was anything but. "Damn you, Kiyone!" Sentaro gasped out, and attempted to bow lower than she had.

She growled and responded in kind, this time sticking out her tongue at him. He bowed even lower, as they became more and more competitive in front of the raven haired Vice-Captain.

As the two Shinigami engaged in their reversed game of limbo, Kaien simply rolled his eyes and walked away from the ridiculous display. "Fu-fukutaicho!" Kiyone called out to him, "look what you did _now_, Sentaro!"

"Me!? It was _your _sucking up that did it!!"

"What? Fukutaicho! It was Sentaro's fault, right? Fukutaicho!?"

Their radios immediately crackled to life, as an indistinguishable voice shouted. The static interfered with any clear message being sent, until a scream cried out and the radio died once again. All three stood around looking dumbfounded by the event. "Kiyone…"

"Hai, Fukutaicho!" the blonde responded and clamored about her uniform in search for batteries.

"K-" the bearded man's radio crackled.

"Fukutaicho!" he called out, and held out his radio for all to see.

"….k-Kaien…." a female voice eerily whispered amongst the static, until his radio too, died as well.

His mind raced. There was no way he couldn't recognize the voice calling out for him. Kaien immediately took off running. He ran to reach the training group, he ran to escort them back to the safety of Sereitei, but most of all he ran to save one of the instructors.

His wife, Miyako.

--

The fun and games were over now. Dodging tree branches and roots, the three Shinigami sped through the forest in search of their comrades. Their radios crackled, with no response whatsoever.

"Hello…hello?" Kiyone clicked the two way device again, "Ichinose-san…Kiyoske-san….anybody!?" She growled at the garbled answer back, as the radio squealed until finally turning it off. "Kaien-fukutaicho, what's going on?"

"Don't you get it?" Sentaro panted, "They've been attacked. For we know, they could all be-"

"-shut up and run, Sentaro…" Kaien called back. "If you have time to squabble, you shouldn't be the slowest one…" However distressing it was, the thought had passed through his mind. "Don't worry about it…" he turned to glance backwards, "…they're tough, and from the Thirteenth Squad too, remember?"

"Yeah, don't doubt Kaien-fukutaicho, Sentaro-baka!" A sudden grind of wood against soil caught her attention, and the two seated officers stopped behind their Vice Captain. "Ano?!" her breath shuddered at the sight. Her gloves clasped over her mouth, to keep from screaming.

Sentaro glanced toward the ground, away from the scene with clenched teeth. There was a battle fought here recently. No, it was more of a massacre. Several dead bodies laid about on the ground or rest against a trunk or two. For the longest time, no one dared to say a word, or uttered so much as a sound. Only the eerie wind and the fluttering of their uniforms broke the otherwise silent scene.

And then, there was a flicker of movement amongst the lifeless. Kiyone blinked and rubbed her eyes, thinking it was nothing, but a trembling arm shot out from a pile of bodies. "Look!" she pointed and called out, "Come on!" Kiyone and Sentaro rushed to his aid while Kaien meanwhile, dropped to his knees.

Hers was the first face he recognized, but for the longest time, Kaien thought it was someone else, or maybe just a trick of his mind. But now that he was closer, his reaction was hard to describe. There was something caught in his throat. Several thousand emotions flooded his system all at once, though one in particular left a greater sting than the rest. Was it anxiety? Sadness? Emptiness? Depression? Regret? Anger?

Nothing of the outside world could register in his mind right now. His jaws clenched tightly, his tongue pressed back against his uvula. His vision blurred and his breathing heavy. Arms trembled to the limp weight they carried; his hands tingled to the sensation of the cloth, soaked in dark life fluids. His heart lurched at the sight of her pale face, lifeless.

"It's Taraude! He's alive!" Sentaro called back to the raven haired Vice-Captain, but he paid no attention to the bearded man's voice.

"…these wounds…" Kaien said softly to himself. "…They're not Hollow attacks, at all…"

"What was that, Kaien-fukutaicho?" Kiyone grunted as she and Sentaro slowly carried the third Shinigami's arms on each of their shoulders. Kaien glanced downwards again, and carefully laid the body back to the ground.

"…these are Zanpakuto wounds…" his eyes darted back to the injured Shinigami who was now limping on his own. "What happened here, Taraude?"

"…I…I didn't mean to…" he stuttered softly in response, "…she was possessed, and I…"

"Tell me!!" Kaien quickly grabbed hold of the whimpering man's collar, and pulled him closely and aggressively. His other hand tightly grabbed his own hilt. "Sorry for what!?"

"…Kaien…" he held the collar tightly and slowly began to slide the blade of his Zanpakuto out from its scabbard

"…Shiba-fukutaicho, restrain yourself!!" A more assertive voice bellowed. Her slap caused Kaien's cheek to redden, but he refused to let go. From the corner of his eye, a smaller raven haired woman stood before him, dressed in the dark and sleeveless uniform of the Secret Forces. "…that means let go of your subordinate." She added. Behind her, two easily recognizable captains waited patiently for his response.

"Ukitake-taicho…" Kaien breathed out, and immediately lessened his grip to allow the Shinigami to drop to the ground. "…Miyako…" his voice cracked.

"…I know, Kaien…" the white haired man nodded softly. "We received orders from Central forty-six to come here immediately. There are several other squads combing the forest as I speak. Apparently the Hollow was more dangerous than we had thought…"

"Now calm down, and just explain yourself…" Wearing his pink and flowered haori, Shunsui knelt next to the panting Shinigami. "What happened?"

"The Hollow…it has abilities…" Taraude said breathlessly. After taking a deep breath, he swallowed the building saliva to hydrate his throat. "It killed Ichinose-senpai…Kiyoske-senpai…it destroyed their _Zanpakutos_…." He shuttered at the thought. "…and when Miyako-senpai tried to stop it, to buy the students time to escape…"

"…Miyako…" Kaien said softly. He brushed his trembling hand through her hair, in some attempt to wake her from a slumber. A feminine hand brushed against his, and the body under him moved just slightly.

"Hmmm….Kaien…?" her voice cooed, to the disbelief of everyone around them.

"…there's no way…" he gasped, and knelt closer down next to her.

Taraude was terrified when the body began to move. "No…._no_!!" he shouted and frantically pushed back with his feet. "That's not her!!"

"…What…?" Kaien glanced again to the pale woman below him, her eyes now open and looking back with the warmth he remembered. Then her eyes darkened; her smile became cold. "…Miyak-"

"…What's wrong, Kaien?" She smirked. "…did I take your _breath_ away?" Her nails dug deeply through his body, and had pierced straight through his back. He gasped for breath, his mind was in shock. A second slice through flesh sounded out, only it was her turn to gasp from pain.

Kaien's sword cut through her abdomen, and stuck out through her shoulder. "You're not…my wife…" he said before withdrawing his blade from her body. "You're not…Miyako!" Feeling his strength beginning to wane, he turned his Zanpakuto horizontally, and hesitantly released himself from her grasp. The woman cried out angrily in pain, as her body writhed over the loss of her arm.

"You bastard!" she screamed out, as a tendril snaked out from her wrist. It wrapped tightly around Kaien's sword, and the blade immediately disintegrated.

"Back away, Shiba-fukutaicho!" Soifon commanded, as she lunged after the possessed Shinigami. As a second tendril swung toward her however, she was forced to jump sideways, though this left the possessed Shinigami open to the four others at the ready.

"Kaien, get out of there!" Jushiro called out as well, immediately revealing his Zanpakuto. Shunsui released his as well, and prepared to attack as Soifon managed to distract the possessed Shinigami. Blood spluttered from the white haired man's mouth, and he dropped to a knee from his heavy coughing.

"Taicho!" Kiyone gasped, as she and Sentaro immediately grabbed onto the man's shoulders. Without hesitation, the bearded Captain continued his attack run, his blades bare. The possessed Shinigami woman looked even more hideous now, as her skin began to deteriorate and match the color of its tendrils. It screamed demonically as he approached closer, and attacked with its tendrils. Shunsui jumped to the right, making a point to remember its destructive ability.

"Now, Soifon!" He called out, as the lithe and small captain appeared behind the Hollow and stabbed it with her released Zanpakuto. A butterfly tattoo appeared where she stabbed, acting as a target for her to strike again. As she drove her hand toward the mark a second time however, a tendril zoomed behind her and struck flesh. She hesitated, as the raven haired Kaien groaned in pain.

"Do it…Soifon…taicho!" he grunted, as she jabbed her small needle Zanpakuto into the butterfly mark. Suzumebachi's special effect seemed to have worked, as the possessed Miyako's skin color began to turn to normal, and whatever life that controlled her seemed to leave as her body dropped to the ground.

"Are you alright, Ukitake-taicho?" she called back.

"I'm hungry…" a voice growled deeply behind her, "…you look tasty, girl!" a swift breeze passed her by as she turned to react, and came face to face with a demon eyed, green skinned Kaien. They were merely inches apart, and separated only by the sword that kept his toothy face at bay.

"You should watch your back more, Soifon-taicho…" Shunsui remarked as he pushed the snarling Kaien backwards.

"You almost had me, girl…" The Hollow snarled again, his tongue slathered about. "Lucky for me, this boy came into contact with my feeler!" Laughing hysterically, he revved himself to a speedy run, and bared inhumanly sharp talons from his fingers. "Before I devour him from the inside, I'll make sure to have him kill as many of you as he can!" A sharp scream shot into the sky, as a blade had managed to pierce him from behind. Kaien's skin turn pink once again, with streaks of red flowing down his arms and dark clothes.

Taraude panted heavily as he tightly gripped his Zanpakuto and pulled the blade out of his Vice Captain's body. "Kaien!" Ukitake gasped while aided by Kiyone and Sentaro. Collapsing to the ground, Kaien grinned with melancholy. The tears of those around him could not be distinguished, as the weight of the dark clouds above them could not be kept back any longer; it had suddenly begun to rain.

"You know...taicho…" he breathed out with difficulty, "…I'm not sorry…for not following…your orders this time…I just had to save Miyako…for her dignity…and all those Shinigami who lost their lives…tonight…"

"Stop it, Kaien…just conserve your breath…" the white haired man tried to wipe the blood stains from his face, "…the fourth squad will be here soon to treat you…"

"I had to hold on…until Taraude's lazy ass could get behind me…" he attempted to laugh, but only succeeded to cough up more blood.

"You don't mean…?"

"Yeah…" Kaien smiled weakly again, "…thanks, Taicho…for letting me fight…" he looked up to the sky, where these droplets of water fell from. From a break in the clouds, moonlight had managed to peek through, and illuminated Soul Society in the distance.

The sight was peaceful and calming, helping Kaien to close his heavy eyelids one last time.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Redux (equals) Remake

_**Bleach** is the intellectual property of Tite Kubo_


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

His bright orange hair was not like anyone else's. It made him stick out from the crowd, and he had quickly learned from experience that this was not a good thing to do. Everywhere he went in the Rukongai, people tended to ignore him. And those who didn't, more often than not stared at him.

There were of course, those who didn't opt for either. More often than not, this small group of people chose to heckle him directly, or refer to him as a thing.

"I've heard a lot about you…" some would say.

"That's not your real hair color…stop trying to be different!" others had said. Majority of the time, the people who did this were young brats within his age range, who didn't know a thing about him except from what they heard from someone else.

"My dad said he killed a Shinigami, and Sereitei marked him with that stupid hair so others could recognize him right away!" some fat and husky kid bragged rather loudly. The "dad" he mentioned probably wasn't even his real one from life, anyways. It was rare for people to find their actual flesh and blood family from when they were alive, despite the Shinigami's promising to reunite them once they crossed over.

Families were usually formed by people from all eras, forming bonds for those who had lost all hope of finding their kin. They would be able to share their experiences and stories, and perhaps pass down traditions from what they had in life. Unfortunately though, preconceived notions tended to be passed down as well.

"Hey fatty, why don't you bad mouth me in my face instead of hiding with your cronies!" the orange haired boy yelled out. He scowled toward the four other boys, who armed themselves with objects like wooden sticks and rocks.

"Screw you! Why don't you come over here!?" the fat boy called back. "You definitely won't cause you're scared, and-" bored, the orange haired boy had already began to walk away from the group of boys, who now stood around, dumbfounded. "Uh…yeah…you _better_ run away!"

Still, over the course of time he had spent in Rukongai, Ichigo learned that no matter how many people of that type there was—who either ignored him, stared at him, or heckled him—there would always be a minority few who had the ability to look past those kinds of notions and would form a family with him. There were three in particular who for reasons beyond him didn't mind him, maybe because he had helped them against those brats from before. He walked a few houses down from where he encountered the boys, and walked up to the third house immediate on his left.

Although it was smaller than most of the houses on this street, and perhaps a little flimsier, he was proud and relieved to have a place to call home. "Ichigo-ni-san! Welcome home!" a cheery dirty blonde girl greeted him as he pushed open the door. "Just sit down; dinner's going to be ready soon…" Already at the table, a raven haired girl nodded to him.

"Hey Ichi-ni, you give those dumbasses what they deserved today?"

"Nah, they weren't worth my time…" the orange haired boy sighed, and readily jumped to sit at a chair.

Yuzu and Karin.

A while back, Ichigo had saved them from the concerted efforts of those troublesome boys who didn't know _how _to treat girls properly. And so, not minding the excuse to crack a few skulls, he more than happily jumped into the middle of the fray and did just that.

The many other residents of Rukongai however didn't of it as a rescue at all, and had complained about him and his "reckless behavior" and "impudent personality". Still, the two girls were grateful, and happily invited him back home with them.

"Here you go." The blonde Yuzu placed a bowl of porridge on the table in front of him. "It's a new recipe I'm trying…tell me if you like it…" she told him and sat at the table next to her 'sister'.

Ichigo stared hungrily at the bowl, and immediately—and loudly—began to feast on what his younger 'sister' provided him with. Just as he was about to finish however, the small voice at the back of his head finally managed to say a word. "Aren't you guys going to have some, too?" Ichigo said with his mouth still full of food.

"_You're _the only one that gets hungry around here, remember?" Karin scoffed, "...and even if we did, I think I'd lose my appetite after watching you eat…" She smirked over her snarky remark. Karin had been saving that one for a while.

Scowling, Ichigo decided to clear his mouth before speaking. "Yeah…that was _really _funny…right Yuzu?" Glancing to the blonde girl, he noticed her face turning a slight shade of blue, and her cheeks puffed up. She let out a snort, until finally giving into full blown laughter. "…oh…" Ichigo scowled even more. "…thanks a lot, Yuzu…"

"Hello my beautiful daughters, Daddy's home!!" the door slammed open loudly, and with such force that the flimsy wood of the house literally shook. Parading around like a madman, the tall raven haired, bearded chinned man smiled ridiculously at Yuzu and Karin, almost like at some points drunkenly. "Hmmm, what smells _so _good!? Yuzu, you know I don't…" he moved to hug her, but paused and glanced over to the orange haired boy, somehow freezing in his one leg standing position. "…what are _you _doing here…?"

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing here'?" Ichigo repeated incredulously, "you adopted me, _remember_, you drunken bastard…?" he scowled.

"Yes well…If you must know, I'm drunk not from alcohol, but off my daughters' _extremely_ pretty f-" Kicked in the face, he did not fly backwards, but instead was only held back by the smaller raven haired girl's outstretched leg. "Come, Karin, let me tickle your tummy with my beard!" his voice, though now muffled, cooed stupidly.

"I _really _wonder how you tricked us into joining your family sometimes, Goat Man…right Yuzu?" She glanced back to her sister. Watching from next to the orange haired boy, the blonde snorted loudly, until finally giving into full blown laughter. "…thanks a lot, Yuzu…"

--

As night had finally fallen over Rukongai, and the crazy antics of the old man and his daughters finally died down, things had gotten calmer. Most people would take this opportunity to sleep, but sneaking out through the single door, Ichigo took this opportunity for an entirely different reason.

One benefit had to be the lack of people walking around. And with no people around to see him travel through the streets, Ichigo wouldn't have to worry about the people who stared at him, or hecklers. At least those who ignored him kept to their own business. The second would have to be the serene peacefulness of night, itself. Unlike the hustle and bustle of the streets during the day, at night, Ichigo was able to think without all of the noise.

As he hopped over a wooden fence, the third reason was standing beyond him. Nearby a lake, the darkly clothed man turned as he approached, and smiled with a wide grin. "H-Hey there, ni-san!" Ichigo called out happily. Though running for nearly fifteen minutes, Ichigo had no need to pause to breathe. But perhaps if Yuzu was around, and she could cook something up really quick…

"…hungry, I see." The man chuckled, "…or I mean 'hear'…" the man ruffled Ichigo's orange hair strongly, and laughed as the boy fell to the ground. He smirked and lowered a hand to pick him up. "So, have you been practicing what I taught you last time?" In his other hand was a stick, which he immediately tossed to the boy and crossed his arms.

Catching the stick, which was fashioned to look like a sword, Ichigo twirled the makeshift weapon with his fingers until grasping the handle end with both hands. "What did you think of that, Taraude-ni-san?" Ichigo smirked. Playfully twirling it again, he yelped in surprise from suddenly tripping on something. The taller man laughed again as he retracted his sheathed sword, which had been swung behind the boy's legs. "Come on!!" Ichigo called out angrily, and pitched the blunt wooden sword straight at the man's face.

"Damnit!" he yelped in pain, as a stream of red flew through the sky.

"That's for tripping me, you jerk!" Ichigo screamed out, careless of the man's pain. Despite the throbbing in his nose however, the man smirked toward the boy, while holding his nostrils closed to hold back the bleeding.

"I guess I _did _deserve that," he said amidst his own laughter. Plopping down to the ground, he laid back and glanced upwards to the night sky. Opposite him, the orange haired boy joined. The moon shone down, its light reflective of the sun's own along with the billions of tiny twinkling lights of the sky. Although there was a cloud or two, none of them blocked them their chance to bask in the magnificent moonlight.

"Say, Taraude-ni-san…" Ichigo was the first to speak out.

"Hmmm?"

"What's it like…you know, in Sereitei?"

"Huh…" the man thought loudly, "…what's it like…?" He made thinking sounds now, like groans and 'uhs' and 'hmms', but Ichigo was sure he was only trying to irk him. Finally losing patience, Ichigo was ready to grab the wooden sword again when the man finally answered. "…It's expansive…" he began, "…all manner of souls reside there. There are thirteen squads that make up a main force, along with the Special Forces, the Research Institute, the-"

"-how do I become one?" Ichigo interrupted. Looking upwards, the man was startled by the orange haired boy suddenly looking down on him.

"Become what? A researcher? I doubt you'd enjoy that at all, kid…"

"No! How do I become a Shinigami? Like you?"

"Well, first off you have to apply to the Shinigami Academy, but I don't think-"

"Alright!" Ichigo ignored him, "when can I apply?" Staring at the boy incredulously, Taraude rubbed his nose bridge.

'_Geez…they're just too similar…' _He counted using his fingers, then glanced back at Ichigo, "You're kidding, right? Enrollment starts tomorrow…and you don't even know the first _thing_ about Kido, or Shunpo…"

"Well you taught me a bunch about sword fighting already, right?" Ichigo said confidently, "I can just learn the rest of that stuff at the Academy." Smirking, Ichigo got to his feet, and walked over to where the wooden sword had landed. Picking it up with both hands, he went into a defensive stance, pointing the wooden tip toward the Shinigami. "I know you have your own reasons for being friends with me, Taraude-ni-san…but I have my own reasons to become a Shinigami…"

"Really, and what's that?" Taraude was surprisingly intrigued, as he picked himself up from the ground.

"Can it wait? I really need to get started for enrollment tomorrow…"

The Shinigami shook his head with a smile, knowing full well the boy wouldn't back down once he made up his mind, nor ever want to ruin a surprise. He closed the distance between them stood next to the boy, unsheathing his sword into a similar posture to him. "Alright…let's get started…"

* * *

**Author's note:** turns out this was a wee bit tougher to write than I thought...oh well, at least I've started working on the third chapter now...all I have to do now is get back to my other stories, haha

_**Acknowledgments: **_loosely based off of the works by Tite Kubo


End file.
